Blossom end rot showing up on squash
Are you one of the lucky ones who have received rain from some of the “pop up” showers? I am not. I have listened to the radio tell me where there are heavy rains, I have watched radar anxiously hoping the yellow and red gets to my house, and I have listened to thunder and watched the clouds pass me by.
My landscape is so dry you can see one-half-inch cracks in the soil in some places. I have had the sprinklers running all day over the garden. At this point, I wouldn’t care if it rained right after I watered the garden!
Lack of rain or irrigation typically leads to root death or complete death of a plant, depending on the severity of dry roots. Plants can wilt periodically with little to no damage, however, continued wilting leads to overall decline.
If it’s a flowering plant, continued wilting leads to flowers dropping before blooming. In some foliage plants, it may also lead to leaf drop.
There is another problem that occurs in the vegetable garden when it’s dry and that is called blossom end rot.
This disease has symptoms that are exactly like the name — the bloom end rots.
I am seeing this right now in my squash and will possibly see it later in tomatoes if I don’t pay attention to watering. The bloom ends of the squash are turning brown and rotting. The same thing occurs on tomatoes, the bloom end starts to turn black and appears sunken.
Blossom end rot symptoms occur when there is lack of calcium in the plant. However, do not add calcium (or Epsom salt) to the soil to “fix” the problem.
Most garden soils in our area tend to have plenty of calcium in them. You don’t need to add more, unless you test the soil to know exactly what is needed.
Blossom end rot is typically the result of inconsistent soil moisture. The plant usually has plenty of access to calcium that’s in the soil; the lack of moist soil prevents it from being taken into the plant.
Therefore, blossom end rot is controlled in our area by supplying irrigation during dry times to keep the soil evenly moist. Most plants require one inch of water per week for best performance. Try to maintain this practice in order to prevent blossom end rot.
Sprays that claim they prevent blossom end rot won’t work either. It’s all about the soil moisture.
Prevent blossom end rot with proper watering.
Pamela Corle-Bennett is the state master gardener volunteer coordinator and horticulture educator for Ohio State University Extension. Contact her by email at bennett.27@osu.edu.